You must have been quite lucky.

The first thing I did was strip off the shellac on the helve, then started sanding it. I started with 220, then 320 then 400 grit. I then soaked in a heavy coat of flaxseed oil and sanded that in with 400 grit.

After the helve was set I started working on the head. First I trued up the cheeks and edge with a double cut file. I had quite a bit of work to even up those grinds. I then started working them on a mousepad with sand paper. I started with 150 and worked down to 320. I still have 400, 600 and green paste work to do to get the edge truly sharp and the cheeks polished.

My Wetterlings falling ax was adequate for work out of the box, but it was not sharp or true, and the rough cheeks would not toss out chips like it will now.

That is exactly why many ax manufactures can sell such junk....most people do not know what the tool is capable of if set up and used properly.

Old Jimbo has a number of articles that cover ax work.

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/axes.html

The Forest Service files that Jimbo links to are essential reading.

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/aatg.html

Others...

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/hatchets2.html

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/hatchets3.html

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/hatchets4.html

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/tinyhatchets.html

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/gransfors.html

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/aas.html

Just tour around Old Jimbo's site for more articles of interest

http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/

An excellent ax book is Dudley Cook's, "The Ax Book" or "Keeping Warm with an Ax"

I have a review of these books here:

http://outdoors-magazine.com/spip.php?article259


A well tuned ax is an excellent tool....off the shelf axes, particularily hardware store goods require a load of work to tune. GB's as long as they have a good helve require a minimum of tuning. That is why they are worth every penny.

Great site. It's too bad he doesn't put any Gerber or Fiskars models up against the old school models.

Your hatchet is most likely made by Hults Bruks, today known as Hultafors Tools:

http://www.hultafors.se/default.asp

I could not find any vendor who is selling HB in the USA, but Hultafors axes are available in Canada and Europe (UK, Germany).

For a similar quality axe or hatchet I recommend Wetterlings (S.A. Wetterlings), they are about 1/2 - 1/3 the price of the Gransfors Bruks ones. Fit and finish not so good as on the GB, but good heat treatment.

I cannot find much on them either. I have a Fiskars and honestly do not consider it much of an ax. I find it way to thin, it is not ground properly and the hollow handle gives it a weird balance. The wrap around head join also does not allow much tuning of it either. It is indeed durable and as a ax shaped object better than nothing but I cannot see any way to turn it into a decent hand ax. Good for tent pegs and some casual fire prep I suppose but not really an ax I would ever carry to use seriously.

Here's my HB. You can;t see it, but the edge is as sharp as nearly any knife. It won;t whittle hair, but it'll certainly shave it from your arm.... at any place onlong the length of the blade.

Hi Strech,

That is the same Brand stamp as on my axe head except the weight is 1.1kg - 2 1/2 lbs.

I only have the axe head, that is why I wanted to find out some information on the quality before I took the time to put a handle on it.

What is your opinion of your hatchet as they are proabaly the same steel?

Thanks,

Mike

Well, my opinion is high. It chops well and holds an edge like an axe or hatcher should.... until continued use begins to dull it

I have a large axe from Sears I think. A couple of small hatchets that I inerited. One is a Stanley and the other, who knows? This HB is my favorite by far. I picked it up at a knife and gun show for $10. The old fellows who were selling it had tried to grind it down with something as evidenced by the grind marks. All I did was invest a couple of hours work on the edge. It'll take a very fine edge but I can;t say how long it holds it because it's all relative to use, in my opinion. It's 15" long.

If I get another, I would like a Gransfors Bruks small forest axe I think.

Thanks for the info Strech, on your good recommendation I will take the time to put a handle on the 2.5lb HB head I have.

I also am thinking of a smaller axe but think I am going to go with a Wetterlings Long Hunting Axe just due to the cost savings and because I can buy them locally.

I like shopping garage sales for old tools and picked up an Iltis Oxhead Felling axe for $2.00 because the handle was in bad shape behind the head, another project I need to finish.

Later,

Mike